Economics 201: Macroeconomic Ideas

Link to slides

For interest:

• • What is happening to the "monetary base" that the Federal Reserve has made available for bank reserves?

The Fed's balance sheet is very scary looking these days. Here is a timeline for how it got that way.

• For interest: There are these items on the asset part of the Fed's balance sheet called "Maiden Lane?" What the heck?

• The Wizard of Oz and Monetary History

  • • NU alumnus William Jennings Bryan's "Cross of Gold" speech

    • "The Wizard of Oz as a Monetary Allegory," Hugh Rockoff, Journal of Political Economy, 1990

    • "Money, Politics, and the Land of Oz," Quentin P. Taylor, Independent Review, Winter 2005

    • For amusement: What was the Wizard thinking anyway?

• • Mansa Musa, the richest person in history. Drunk History. Business Insider.

  • The writings of Milton Friedman

  • The situation in Zimbabwe...has something to do with the money supply....

    • Here is what Zimbabwe is doing now for money (The London Mail, July 7, 2010)

  • Here is the International Monetary Fund (IMF)

    • Dominique Strauss-Kahn charged with "aggravated pimping." (July 2013)

    • For amusement: Dominique Strauss-Kahn in prison (from Saturday Night Live, May 22, 2011)

    • Related from Jon Stewart, "La Cage au Fools" (May 19, 2011)

Data:

• How is Investment Demand doing?

• How are the various measures of the Money Supply doing? M1, M2

• Growth of the Monetary Base 1980-2007

• Growth of the Monetary Base since 2007

• Growth of the Monetary Base 1980-now